In this seminar, James Rojas of Place It! and John Kamp of Prairieform will explore how they engage people in urban planning, and landscape and transportation design through their hands, explorations of memory, and the senses. Their approach centres on the observation that engaging people through these methods instead of mere talking radically changes outcomes in planning and design. It simultaneously levels the playing field and allows people of all backgrounds to participate. They will briefly ground their work in the psychology behind this phenomenon and then explore key projects on transportation station design, shared bike/ped spaces, and a new plaza and discuss how they engaged diverse audiences through their hands and senses to radically change the outcomes of these projects.
If you would like to explore James and John’s work in advance of the seminar you can explore the following links:
https://abc7news.com/city-planning-urban-art-development/10322558/
https://norcalapa.org/2019/07/collaborative-sensory-based-community-engagement-for-a-more-equitable-bike-pedestrian-environment/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rHz2iXqflFI&t=24s
https://usa.streetsblog.org/2018/01/05/in-phoenix-a-light-rail-station-designed-for-and-by-people-with-disabilities/
Hosts:
Alexandra Gomes, Research Officer, LSE Cities
Atefeh Motamedi, Town Planner